It’s that time of year again. The festive season is upon us. The festive Season is also often called the “silly season”, because it is characterised by ridiculous excesses in eating and drinking. It is totally idiotic that people starve themselves for months to fit into bikinis and slinky evening wear before Christmas, and then pig out for a brief few days and gain back all they have lost.
Advertisement
Then there is of course alcohol and the vast amounts that get consumed during December each year. This not only leads to horrific car accidents, but also affects the liver, causes gout and arthritis, and piles on the kilograms, especially on those “boeps”.
Here's what you can do to prevent your hard-earned waistline from bulging and your liver from packing up:
Moderation is the key The most important thing you can do to prevent Christmas excesses is to be moderate in everything you do. Drink moderate amounts of alcohol, eat moderate amounts of food and do some exercise to counteract the ravages of partying. Make a banner which says “moderation” and stick it up on the fridge, inside the drinks cabinet, and next to the mirror in your bathroom.
How to cheat when dining out When you dine out in restaurants and at those special dinner parties organised by family and friends, you need a few strategies to help you cheat the kilojoule attack you are going to face.
Eat grilled seafood instead of red meat and skip cream- or butter-laden sauces. Ask for extra lemon and freshly ground pepper instead. A freshly grilled sole with lemon and black pepper tastes divine and will save lots of kilojoules.
Ask for a baked potato instead of chips and go easy on the sour cream.
Make a beeline for the salad bar and stock up with fresh lettuce, cucumber, tomato, gherkins, and sliced fruit like spanspek, pawpaw, Kiwi fruit and pineapple. Don’t drown your salad in mayonnaise or seafood dressing, just add a touch of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Have fresh fruit salad or strawberries for dessert without the cream and ice cream. Avoid those mince pies, Christmas puddings and brandy butter like the plague.
How to cheat on drinking If you really want to avoid those 29 kJ per gram of alcohol that you toss back so easily, then stick to soda water with a twist of lemon or dilute dry white wine with iced water.
If you are going to drink alcohol, have a glass of water for every glass of wine or spirits you consume. This will not only dilute the kJs, but also make you feel 100% better the next day.
Fruit juices with plenty of ice are also a healthy option to prevent hangovers, but remember that fruit juices are not low in energy if you don’t dilute them with water, ice or soda water.
Artificially sweetened cold drinks are also an option, although one should not overdo them either. You may feel bloated from all that gas.
How to repair the damage If you have had a heavy night and/or a gargantuan meal, repair the damage by eating less for a day or two thereafter. Concentrate on fresh fruit and raw vegetables, low-fat yoghurt, pasta, whole-grain cereals and bread. Have a meat-less, fish-less day.
Drink plenty of liquids like water, diluted fruit juice and diluted Energade to help your liver recover. Take Essentiale or ProHep or a vitamin and mineral supplement to boost detoxification and stick to non-alcoholic, non-caffeinated drinks for 48 hours.
Get active. As soon as that hangover wears off and you can face the light of day, do some exercise. Go to your gym, swim actively, walk briskly or jog. Get that blood flowing to the liver and activate your muscles. Top up on oxygen by breathing deeply and enjoy the benefits. You will feel reborn after a good workout and will have repaired some of the damage.
Get lots of sleep. Our bodies recover from excesses when we sleep. Over Christmas and New Year, most people are sleep-starved. You can’t enjoy life if you feel like a zombie, much less drive 1 000 km or be the life and soul of the next party. So make sure that you catch up on missed sleep. Have a glass of low-fat milk before you retire - the high tryptophan content will help to calm your jangled nerves and promote sleep.
Remember, moderation is what it’s all about. - (Dr I.V. van Heerden, DietDoc)
Bookmark with:
What are social bookmarks?